69-year-old jailed over undeclared duty-not-paid cigarettes
Crhk · 2 SOURCESabout 1 hour ago2 MIN
Summary
A 69-year-old local male traveller has been sentenced to three weeks in jail and fined HK$2,000 after customs officers found 1,981 duty-not-paid cigarettes in his luggage when he entered Hong Kong via the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Port. The case was heard at West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts, where he was convicted of importing undeclared duty-not-paid cigarettes under the Dutiable Commodities Ordinance.
Key Points
- Customs officers intercepted the 69-year-old man at the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge Hong Kong Port when he arrived in Hong Kong on July 22.
- A search of his personal luggage uncovered 1,981 undeclared duty-not-paid cigarettes, and he was arrested on the spot.
- Customs estimated the cigarettes had a market value of about HK$7,500 and a duty potential of about HK$6,500.
- The man was sentenced at West Kowloon Magistrates' Courts on July 24 to three weeks' imprisonment and a HK$2,000 fine.
- In the same court hearing, two mainland male travellers aged 34 and 37 were each jailed for 11 months and fined HK$2,000 in separate smuggling cases
Why It Matters
The sentence adds to customs' message that travellers who bring undeclared cigarettes into Hong Kong face immediate arrest and possible jail terms, even in relatively small-quantity cases. Customs said imprisonment carries a strong deterrent effect, and reminded the public that offences involving illicit cigarettes can carry a maximum penalty of a HK$2 million fine and seven years' imprisonment